San Francisco is a sculpture of tiered hills wrapped by a commanding
bay. It is fog, a famous red-gold bridge— Golden Gate—and
a city of surprises and secrets. It is a cacophony of sounds: the
gong of a cable car, the clatter of pigeon wings in Union Square
and the sea breeze rustling at the Pacific’s edge. It is a blend
of exhilarating smells: freshly baked sourdough bread, salt-scrubbed
air and the vapors of espresso escaping from hissing machines.

Always a magnet for foreign visitors and American tourists, too,
it draws the creative and restless young. Half of San Francisco’s
population is under 35, most of them migrants seeking to carve out
new lives. The youthquake has given the city an energetic boost
with added hotels, restaurants, shops and attractions.

Cable Car, San Francisco
(credit: Mark Snyder)

But the city has not lost its familiarity and the old sites bear
revisiting, especially on foot. If you want to cover a great deal
of ground in one day, walk the Barberry Coast Trail using
the map and guide published by the San Francisco Bay Historical
Society (415-775-1111). It covers 3.8 miles of almost entirely flat
or gently sloping streets. The official guide for this tour includes
historical data and places to stop along the way. The San Francisco
Convention & Visitors Bureau (415-391-2000) distributes a brochure
of four neighborhood walks—Fisherman’s Wharf, North Beach,
Chinatown and Union Square—encompassing from 17 to
35 blocks.

WHERE
TO STAY

One of many reasons for booking accommodations
at The Argent Hotel is its address. The neighborhood, SOMA
(South of Market), was once studded with factories and industrial
warehouses. No more! Galleries, museums, studios, a ballpark and
a shopping and entertainment complex replace them.

Although the hotel is a mere 17 years old, it has undergone two
renovations since it started accepting guests. Completed in the
summer of 2000, the latest design was inspired by the Art Moderne
style so prevalent in Europe in the ‘30s. The Argent is, nevertheless,
a hotel for the new millennium. The lobby is bold and contemporary,
but not overwhelming. Furniture, carpets, fabrics, paint and decorative
accessories all have a fresh look.

Enhanced VIP service is offered on the executive level floors where
all rooms have floor-to-ceiling windows with sweeping views of the
city from the Bay Bridge to Twin Peaks and from the Golden
Gate to downtown. The rooms are both luxurious and comfortable.
Service is excellent. The 33rd floor lounge is always full of people
enjoying themselves. Three repasts and drinks are complimentary.
A varied and delicious spread, such as sushi and sashimi, an assortment
of pates or vegetables and shrimp and dips, is served at the cocktail
time.

Unfortunately, there is only one outpost of the luxury Japanese-managed
Nikko chain here in the United States, but it most belongs
in San Francisco with its large Asian presence. Recently renovated
to the tune of $8 million, the 13-year old hotel maintains its East-West
flavor. The soaring new lobby bursts with drama. Water cascades
over white marble; tall orange glass lamps open like flowers. Wall
coverings, textiles and art reflect softer tones. Rooms are decorated
in earth colors, plush fabrics and sycamore and maple woods from
around the world.

The top five floors where the suites and deluxe rooms have been
located are designated Nikko floors and have panoramic views of
the city skyline and the Bay. Nikko floor guests have exclusive
use of a lounge with internet access where breakfast, afternoon
snacks and a light cocktail buffet are served along with wine and
beer.

The health club features a 48-foot atrium enclosed pool and an
outdoor terrace. You can enjoy a true Japanese experience here in
the Kamaburo relaxation room where the temperature is 100 degrees.
Guests unwind by lying on wooden palettes that are set on heated
rocks.

The hotel offers the use of complimentary Visors operating the
Palm system and including information about transportation, dining,
entertainment and shopping, which can be updated daily by the concierge.
You can also program your own schedule.

Offering both sushi and sashimi and “steakhouse” beef in a quality
restaurant seems risky. At Anzu in the Hotel
Nikko, they marry perfectly. Two chefs, one Swiss born and the other
from Tokyo, are responsible for separate parts of the menu. Selections
from the Japanese kitchen are meant to be ordered as starters. When
you have a hankering for sushi and your companions turn up their
noses at raw fish, Anzu is the perfect compromise. There’s even
a maki roll for the uninitiated; it’s filled with cooked duck and
lamb. The halibut and tuna sushi were terrific.

Some of the pristine fish come from Japan while top-notch prime
Midwestern steak—filet mignon, ribeye, strip and porterhouse—is
shipped from Chicago. Choose from among seven sauces like Bernaise,
lime-curry and hoisin barbecue. A signature potato puff melts in
your mouth and is tremendously satisfying. But the best accompaniment
of all is an extraordinary custardy mushroom pudding made with brioche.
The warm and oozy bittersweet chocolate cake makes a fine finale.

In keeping with the latest fad Anzu serves 55 cocktails created
in-house.

The simple decor is a melange of quiet colors—taupe and beige—with
spare accents in jade and malachite green.

When a chef trains and works in many countries, the menu he designs
for his restaurant is bound to be eclectic international. Joel Guillon,
executive chef at Cafe Fifth Three, The Argent’s four-star
dining room, and Maitre Cuisinaire de France, a distinction he shares
with only 300 other chefs worldwide, runs a kitchen that turns out
dishes that are not overly contrived. He prepares an appropriate
number of choices so that ordering does not become an impossible
decision. For appetizers the lively Watsonville beetroot salad made
with three kinds of beets is given some umph with a tangy dressing
and goat cheese. Grilled asparagus are firm; sharpness and crunch
are added with feta cheese and roasted hazelnuts.

To match the look of the hotel, Cafe Fifty-Three has a nouveau-European
design. It is divided into three distinct areas so that diners do
not feel overwhelmed in a cavernous room. They will also appreciate
the well-spaced tables.

In a recent Travel & Leisure reader’s poll San Francisco was the
winner as the most desirable city in the United States and Ana
Mandara was named as its table of choice. No surprise. If you
can’t get a reservation, go for a drink and some wonderful nibbles
in the upstairs lounge. Among the house cocktails is a light and
pleasant gin-based drink, the Ana Mandara. The modern Vietnamese
food is innovative and extraordinarily delicious. Dungeness crab
baked in bamboo leaves and stuffed rice flour crepes topped with
crispy noodles remind you of how delicate this cooking is.

You know that the chef is a perfectionist when he imports fish,
Mekong Basa, which is specially farm-raised for his use. A cross
between sea bass and catfish, it is served with spicy lemon sauce.
Quail grilled over charcoal sit on a pile of heavenly sticky rice.
No meal here is complete without fragrant jasmine rice studded with
bits of vegetables and ham and steamed in pandanus leaves. Unlike
some Asian menus, Ana Mandara’s desserts are not predictable. Perhaps
they are not authentic either, but they are adventurous. Basil blends
beautifully with lime sorbet. Rich caramel sauce complements banana
flambé in filo with chocolate mousse and creme anglais.

The restaurant whose large second story windows overlook Fisherman’s
Wharf combines many elements from Vietnamese architecture. Built
on two levels, you can see the beauty of two pagodas and their exquisite
interiors as you look down upon them from upstairs. Khmer sculptures,
hmong art, cement lanterns, bamboo shades and large palm plants
are reminders of this gentle culture. Specially created uniforms,
tableware and linens enhance the Vietnamese experience.

When you find a formula that works, stick with it and educate your
customers’palates. Fusion cooking was an unproven concept in 1985,
the year Tommy Toy’s Cuisine Chinoise first opened its doors.
But diners soon realized that French and Chinese do mix. As proof,
the signature dinner hasn’t changed and regulars order it repeatedly.
Tackling six courses involves a lot of eating, but the dishes offer
a contrast in textures and tastes and the service is unhurried.

The meal begins with traditional dim sum, crisp lettuce folded
around minced squab, and is followed by a fresh coconut filled with
seafood and bisque and sealed with puff pastry. In this setting
it seems more Asian than Gallic. The first entree is a whole shelled
lobster and angel hair noodles napped with peppercorn sauce. The
second is sublime Peking duck served with lotus buns rather than
the usual pancakes. The buns taste like white bread and are the
only disappointment. Charred beef with herbs on a base of four-flavored
fried rice is comparable to the very best quality porterhouse. The
meal ends with peach mousse. No fortune cookies here!

The dining room, copied from the Ching Dynasty Empress Dowager’s
Reading Room in the Forbidden City in Beijing, is filled with Oriental
art, antiques and fine furnishings.

On a Thursday evening at 6:30 would-be patrons were turned away
from Farallon. The restaurant has garnered many kudos in
its three-year existence, including best seafood eatery in town.
But the menu does not list fish exclusively and the chef refers
to his cooking as coastal cuisine. Iced shellfish indulgence, a
mountain of oysters, shrimp, cockles, crayfish, periwinkles, crab
claws and clams with a tangy dipping sauce is meant to be shared.

Squab confit tortellini with corn salad and fig compote are sublime.
Roasted sablefish, an unusual fish that is rarely served, is juicy
and full of flavor. The kitchen produces stellar grilled squab,
which are moist and tender.

Desserts are completely original and the unusual pairings of ingredients
work well. Mixed berry hazelnut financier with corn ice cream and
spiced compote is a winner. Other surprising ingredients that are
used in the sweets to enhance flavor are black pepper and balsamic
vinegar.

To match the food, the restaurant’s design is a fantasy of underwater
whimsy. Jellyfish-shaped frosted glass fixtures with colorful tentacles
are suspended overhead. Portholes, paintings of the wharf, starfish
and marble-tiled fish set in the floor also add to the amusing ambiance.

Angled on a corner across the edge of the bay on San Francisco’s
Embarcadero is one-year-old LiveFire, named after
the wood oven on which signature American fare is grilled. The food
is inconsistent, but when it is good, it dazzles. For starters paprika-battered calamari is tasty, but the spicy lemon aioli for dipping
is bland and the presentation on a black canvas napkin to soak up
the grease is an eyesore. Another appetizer, chunks of Caribbean
marinated and grilled salmon on skewers served with slivered red
onion and fennel slaw is better.

Entrees are leaps above the appetizers, which clearly need refinement
in preparation and plating. Trifecta of duck breast over Chinese
long beans and fruitwood grilled sweet potatoes, topped with crispy
fried taro chips is enjoyable. Duck is well complemented by smoky
caramelized potatoes. Hearty lean grilled pork loin coupled with
Thai bean sprouts and peanuts is delicious, but should include greens
or another more substantial vegetable. In addition to the specialty
pizzetas, fish, poultry, lamb and steak, there are several vegetarian
pasta dishes for herbivores.

Similarly, desserts are a mixed bag. Apricot sorbet is pungent
and not too sweet, the macadamia nut brittle ice cream creamy and
addictive. Both are served in chocolate-dipped waffle shells. Strawberry
sorbet in lemon gratin with mixed berries is insipid, gooey and
does not look appealing. The restaurant’s wine list is vast with
many reasonably priced selections starting at $12. The service is
too laid back.

In the open kitchen flames dance over cherry, maple, walnut and
almond logs, warming the front room and active bar. Beige leather
banquettes and cherry and blond wood floors are accented with art
deco lamps and saffron-colored gourds. Matte chrome counters and
bars line the front room and black and white photos of maritime
life in the early-19th century cover the walls. Both provide a cool
counterpoint to the autumnal hues. In an airy and quiet dimly lighted
back room fitted with white tile columns and walls, the tables are
set wide apart. Bossa nova and bebop play softly.

Though this lively, hip eatery has to work out some kinks, the
chef seems talented enough to smooth the edges. With its appealing
design and simple, unfussy cuisine, the restaurant could graduate
to the neighborhood’s stellar circle of eateries.

If the Greek gods Artemis, Demeter and Dionysos were meeting for
a business lunch, they might have chosen a divine spot like Kokkari.
An upscale Greek taverna in Jackson Square, it represents
the hunt and harvest, as well as wine and revelry much like the
deities do.

Chef Jean Alberti fuses Aegean cuisine and California fare with
flair and novelty, focusing mainly on game and seafood. Kokkari’s
two large earthy rooms defined by exposed wooden beams, a long active
bar, and logs ablaze in a stone fireplace combine charm with rusticity.
With its solicitous service and warm ambiance Kokkari manages to
be both down-to-earth and heavenly, recalling ancient Mediterranean
banquets that lasted well into the night.

We began our meal with black rice dolmathes wrapped in cabbage
leaves that are salty and hearty, but fortunately lacking in the
usual excess of oil. Next we enjoyed a classic Greek salad with
cucumber, pepper, tomato and onion lovingly arranged with tangy
dressing and smooth goat-milk feta cheese. The heirloom tomatoes
in a salad are refreshing, firm and flavorful. Tossed with basil
and honey dressing and topped with mild, melted Manouri cheese,
the dressing is a bit too sweet and the sinfully
creamy cheese lacks complex flavor.

Our entrees included traditional moussaka with eggplant, lamb,
potato and yogurt béchamel sauce served in a brown clay pot. The moussaka
is rich and heavy without being mushy. All the layers keep their
distinctive tastes; the lamb is lean and the eggplant smooth rather
than acidic. A whole striped bass with braised greens in lemon-oregano
vinaigrette is a light and simple main course, delicate white flesh
glowing on the plate. Paired with salty and well-seasoned chard,
this dish could have fed two people.

We also sampled spicy braised rabbit with okra and pearl onions
that is perhaps the weakest item on the menu. The texture of the
rabbit is mealy and the sauce overpowered it. A Herculean-sized grilled
lamb chop is too fatty, but the side of oregano-laced potatoes that
came with it is delicious.

The red wine from Naxos that our server recommended is also excellent.
With dessert we enjoyed Greek coffee that is warmed in a copper
pot over volcanic sand from the Aegean islands. A choice dessert
is nectarine semolina custard wrapped in filo and served with lemon
thyme ice cream. It is sweet and airy, a fruity cloud of citrus
on the tongue.

Even when you are tucked away in a cozy booth, the restaurant is
noisy. However, in response to our request, management did turn
down the music. The friendly service was flawless.

Kokkari is named after a small fishing village on the island of
Samos where Orion supposedly fell in love with the daughter of the
King of Chios. To honor this passion, Orion hunted for wild game
and seafood to serve at ceremonial banquets. The restaurant tries
to serve food fit for the gods that would rival Orion’s legendary
feasts. With its attractive atmosphere and some well-prepared fare, Kokkari
almost succeeds.